Betrayed
by jayhogartismyangel
Summary: Clare Edwards finally confronts her father about how she feels, about his cheating. Fiveshot
1. Part One

**Betrayed**

**Summary: Clare Edwards finally confronts her father about how she feels, about his cheating.**

**A/N: I can't help but wonder about how Clare would confront her father about what she found on her parents' divorce papers. Hopefully, we'll get to see this in the second half of season eleven, considering we didn't see Randall at all in the first half.**

**This is a oneshot.**

Clare Edwards sighed loudly and rolled her eyes as she combed her slender fingers through her hair. Today was the first day in about five months, that she would be seeing her father. He didn't know that she knew about his cheating. No one except Jake and Alli did. She hadn't even told her mom. For a few months, her father had been away on some type of business trip in America. Then, a couple of weeks ago, he'd finally come back. She had refused to see him then, even going as far as to throw away the gifts that he'd brought back for her. She knew that it might seem harsh, but she'd gone without even a phone call from him during his entire trip. She was still really upset about the divorce papers and she didn't feel like hearing his lies. He could act like she was important to him all that he wanted, but she didn't believe it. If it was true, he'd have never cheated on her mom. He'd have never destroyed their family. She was broken from her thoughts when she heard a knock on the door and her father's voice as Glen answered it so that Helen didn't have to.

Steeling herself, Clare prayed silently and then, with shaking hands stepped out of the bathroom. As she walked past Jake's bedroom door, it opened and he walked out, embracing her comfortingly, resting his chin on the top of her head. She leaned into his chest with a sigh, burrowing her face in his plaid shirt and squeezing her bright blue eyes shut. Her slender arms wrapped around his waist tightly as she breathed in his scent.

"You okay?" Jake asked softly, pulling away from her a little bit to stare down into his eyes.

Clare tried to smile reassuringly but she failed and shook her head. "I don't know how to act around him." She said in a soft whisper. "I'm just so _angry _at him for what he did."

Jake sighed softly, listening closely to make sure that his dad, Helen, and Clare's father were still talking, before he leaned down to peck her on the lips. "Maybe you should talk to him about it. Tell him how you feel and that you know what he did."

She stared up at him with wide, disbelieving eyes. "Well how exactly do I even go about that? Clearly, he and mom didn't want me knowing the real reason behind the divorce. He'll probably get mad and act like it's my fault." She said. voice cracking with emotion.

He smiled down at her sadly, and brought her into his room so that they could sit down on the edge of his bed. "I'm sure he wouldn't blame you. And besides, you deserve some answers. You deserve to know why he did what he did. I can tell that the whole thing bothers you, even though you don't like to talk about it, much."

Clare gave him a sad grin and leaned in to softly press her lips to his, before pulling away. "Thank you for listening to my problems, Jake." She told him, just as there was a knock on the door. Pulling away from him, Clare stared at the door as it opened, revealing her mom standing there.

Helen glanced at her daughter and Jake suspiciously, before saying, "Clare, your father's downstairs waiting for you. I told him that you'd be down in a few minutes."

"Okay, mom." The teen in question said, standing up and following her mother out of the room, reluctantly. Before she was out the door, she turned her head to smile at her boyfriend/stepbrother before walking out of the room.

Clare rolled her eyes and slid into the passenger's side of her father's car, slamming the door angrily, and leaning her head against the window.

"So...Clare-Bear, how have you been? You never called me back, these past few weeks." Randall said to his daughter, glancing at her out of the corner of his eyes.

Clare growled under his breath at his act and didn't answer, content in sitting here in this uncomfortable silence. She wished that he'd get a clue.

Randall frowned slightly at his daughter's behavior as he pulled into a small, italian restaurant that he knew used to be Clare's favorite when she was younger. "Come on, Clare. Get out of the car. Maybe you'll feel better and will actually talk to me once you get some food in you." He got out of the car, quickly, waiting for his little girl to get out as well so that they could head in.

"Fat chance." Clare hissed under her breath as she got out of the car, clenching her fists to her sides.

Inside the restaurant, they took a seat at the table that the hostess had led them to and waited for a waitress to come and ask them what they wanted to drink. Clare stayed silent as she flipped through her menu, even though she already knew what she was going to get. She was trying to avoid the chance of conversation as much as possible. She knew that she should just take her boyfriend's suggestion and confront her father about the fact that he cheated, but she didn't know how. Seeing him, acting as if he'd done nothing wrong, just made her angrier.

"Hi, my name's Cathy, could I get you two something to drink?" A pretty, brunette waitress asked, beaming at the two of them with dark brown eyes as she held her notepad. She didn't seem to realise that she'd just stepped into an uncomfortable situation as she began to twirl her hair around a finger, with one hand on her hip.

Clare rolled her eye as her dad smiled stupidly at the woman, as she touched his arm flirtatiously. It was disgusting what he was doing. The waitress was probably only about eight years older than Darcy. Mumbling what she wanted to drink, she turned her head away, quickly.

"So, what have you been doing, Clare?" Her father asked of her, once the waitress had left to go get their drinks.

"Nothing, really." She answered shortly.

"Come on, Clare. Why won't you talk to me?" Randall asked after the waitress came back with their drinks and then left the table again after taking their order.

"Why are you acting as if you didn't do anything wrong?" Clare bit back, glaring back at him with icy blue eyes.

Randall gave her a confused look.

"You cheated on mom. You're the reason our family fell apart!" Clare almost yelled, slamming her small fists into the table, ignoring the pain.

He looked at her with confusion written all over his face. He and Helen had decided to keep the specifics of the divorce away from Clare. "How did you know?" He asked.

Clare shook her head in disbelief at his question and gave a bitter laugh. "It doesn't matter, does it? You're not even sorry for it. I'm gonna go." She grabbed her purse and stalked out of the restaurant, leaving her father sitting there as she called Jake to come pick her up.

**Next/last part: Clare tells her mom about what she knows. Clare and her dad have a much needed conversation.**


	2. Part Two

**Betrayed**

**A/N: Helen's maiden name is Auden. This has been changed to a threeshot. Things went a little differently than planned and well...**

**Part Two**

Jake's truck pulled up alongside the curb infront of The Dot, where Clare sat on a bench, knees pulled up, under her chin. Jake stepped out of his vehicle and walked slowly over to where she sat, worry filling him as he took in her red-rimmed eyes and tearstained face. "Clare?" He questioned her softly, concern filling him. It was hard to see her like this, looking so, absolutely _broken._ He'd been wondering what was going on with Clare and her father, since Clare left with him about an hour and a half, ago. He'd been worried about how his girlfriend was going to deal with seeing Randall Edwards, again after not seeing him for months.

She lifted her head and stood up, running over to him and throwing her arms around his neck. She buried her head in his clothed shoulder and began to sob.

He wrapped his arms protectively around her shaking figure and ran a hand through her messy curls, soothingly. "What happened?" He asked after he'd helped her into the truck and they'd been driving for awhile. They were currently parked at a stoplight so he turned his full attention on her.

Clare looked at him. "He didn't seem to understand why I am so angry at him. He acted so...confused. Like he'd done nothing wrong. I lost it. I yelled at him about how I knew that he cheated on my mom and how he destroyed our family. And all he did was ask how I knew. He didn't even act sorry about it!" Her fists were clenching and unclenching at her sides as she tried to control her anger.

Jake was about to answer, when someone beeped their car horn at him. He turned his attention to the stoplight and saw that it had turned green. He smiled sadly at Clare, and place a comforting hand on one of her clenched fists as he drove.

The truck parked infront of the Martin/Edwards household and Clare got out of the truck without speaking. She wrapped her slender arms protectively around herself and stared down at her feet as Jake opened the front door for her.

"Jake, your father and I wondered where you went. We wondered if you would be okay with us ordering Chinese or pizza for din-" Helen cut herself off as she walked into the living room, from the kitchen, seeing her daughter standing there beside her stepson. Clare! Honey, what our you doing home so early?"

Clare didn't speak, not really wanting to go over the story again. She brushed past Jake and her mom and headed upstairs to her bedroom, throwing herself onto the bed and burying her head in her pillow.

A soft knock sounded on her bedroom door before it opened and shut once again.

"Jake told me what you said to your dad." Helen said quietly as she went to sit on the edge of her daughter's bed, rubbing circles into the teenage girl's back. "Why didn't you tell me that you'd found the divorce papers?"

Clare sat up and turned her head torwards her mom. "Because you didn't want me to know, obviously." She stated hoarsely. "You couldn't even bother to tell me yourself. I had to find out by finding those papers on the stand in the living room."

"We were only trying to keep it secret to protect you." Helen answered, wrapping an arm around Clare's shoulders. "I know that seems stupid. I mean, you're sixteen. You deserved to hear the truth from me or Randall. I just wanted to keep you my innocent litle girl. I know how badly our fighting and the divorce affected you. Not to mention what happened with that _boy. _I just...I didn't want to hurt you more. I didn't realise that it would hurt more to not find out from me."

The teenage girl shook her head and narrowed her eyes. "_You _might've been trying to protect me, mom. But dad wasn't. When I blew up at him about what I knew, he didn't even try to explain anything. He just asked how I even knew. He acted as if he was innocent in all of this." Her voice rose as she became angrier and even more hurt. "I couldn't be around him so I left the restaurant and called Jake to bring me home."

"Well, you're going to have to talk to him!" Helen told her daughter in a firm voice. Whatever unsettled bad feelings she had torwards her ex-husband didn't matter. Her little girl deserved to have her father in her life. She _needed _to have him in her life, no matter how much she protested.

Clare snorted and shook her head with a scoff. "I don't want anything to do with him, mom! _I hate him!"_ She stated through gritted teeth, her eyes on fire as she stood up from her bed, bouncing on the balls of her feet, a bit. With that, she walked past her mom in a huff and walked out of her bedroom, slamming the door shut, hard. She walked over to Jake's bedroom door and walked inside, seeing him lying there on his bed. His long, slightly muscled arms were behind his head and a pair of earphones covered his ears.

His eyes shot open when he felt her sit beside him. "Clare?" He questioned softly, taking off his headphones and letting them hang around his neck as he sat up against the headboard. "Are you okay?"

She tried to smile but failed. "I was going to ask you if you'd go to the movies or something, with me. I need to get my mind off of everything that's going on."

Jake chewed on his bottom lip and then nodded. "Sure." He answered, giving her a comforting smile. He'd heard her talking to her mom, heard what she'd said about her father. He couldn't help but hope that once his girlfriend calmed down a bit, she'd be more willing to talk to her father.

About six months had passed since the day that Clare had went out on the town with her father. Since she'd confronted him about his cheating and since she'd written him out of her life. She still refused to see him. Calls from him went ignored, presents from him were thrown in the trash. She refused to come downstairs when he would stop for a visit. At school, she had taken to not responding when someone called her Ms. Edwards. She went by Clare Auden, now. Using her mother's maiden name. Jake had tried to talk to her about her father and how she should at least hear what he had to say. She never listened though. Clare and Alli had made up and were the best of friends again, Jake and Clare's relationship was growing stronger, she'd even managed to become friends with Eli again. The one thing she still wouldn't do was have any interaction with Randall. It's kind of funny and horrible how things go. Clare could never have known what was going on with her father. She could never have known that she'd arrive home one day after going to the movies with Jake, Eli, Adam, and Alli. She could never have predicted that she'd receive a phone call from the hospital, telling her that her father had been in a horrible car accident and had lapsed into a coma.

**Last Part: Clare faces the prospect of losing her father.**


	3. Part Three

**Betrayed**

**A/N: Now a fourshot. Or well, this would be the first half of part three. The last part should be up tomorrow. I just wanted to hurry and post something, because I meant to update this weekend but didn't have time, because I was out shopping and visiting family.**

**Part Three**

Clare sat slumped in one of the hard backed, uncomfortable seats in the waiting room. Her arms were wrapped protectively around herself and she was staring numbly at a far wall, as she awaited the news on her father. She didn't know what to think or what to feel. Emotions usually came so easy to her, but she had no idea as to what she was feeling. All her anger at her dad had vanished as soon as she'd gotten news about the call. She couldn't believe that her dad was here in the hospital. That he'd been in a horrible car wreck, one caused by a drunk driver slamming into his vehicle.

So far, there was really no news on how he was doing. All she knew was that he was getting some kind of surgery. She didn't even have a clue as to how badly he had been hurt. Clare jumped when she felt a gentle hand touch her thigh and she turned her head to lock eyes with Jake's soft, comforting ones.

"It's going to be okay, Clare." Jake told her earnestly, smiling reassuringly as he wrapped an arm around her slender shoulder's and pulled her close. He pressed a gentle, chaste kiss to the top of her head.

Clare just closed her eyes and took a deep breath and sighed. She wished so much that she could believe him.

Jake's arm tightened aroung her when he saw the doctor coming around the corner holding a clipboard with a grim look on his face.

She sat up straighter when she saw the doctor and she moved her hand to wrap around Jake's, needing his strength.

The prematurely grey haired doctor came up to her and smiled down at her politely. "Are you Clare Edwards?" he asked, looking down at the clipboard in his hands.

She nodded hesitantly, biting her lip. "Yeah." She answered softly, blue eyes filled with worry and terror. "Is my dad okay?"

The doctor who identified himself as Doctor Raegan sighed and took a seat beside of her. "I'm not really sure if it's okay to tell you this without your mother here, but Nurse Johanna told me that your mom said that it was okay and that she'd get here soon."

"You're not answering me Dr. Raegan." Clare answered, voice hardening as she glared at him with icy blue eyes.

Dr. Raegan looked at her sadly. "When the car slammed into your father's, his head slammed into the windshield which caused a brain hemorrhage or bleeding of the brain. Along with that, he has three broken ribs and a broken leg. We are working on stopping the bleeding, now. But I'm not going to lie to you, Miss. Edwards. This doesn't look good. I'll have my nurse come out and let you know when he's out of surgery and when you can see him." He reached a hand out to gently pat the teenage girl on the shoulder, comfortingly before he stood up to leave. This would always be the hardest part of the job. Giving his patients' families bad news.

Clare swallowed the lump in her throat and felt tears sting her eyes. She could feel her hands shake with nerves as she struggled to control her sobs.

Jake sucked in a breath when he heard the doctor's words. He moved out of his chair and knelt infront of Clare, taking both of her hands in his, and looking in her blue eyes. "Clare, c'mon. Please calm down. You aren't going to be of any help to your father if you get yourself sick." He looked at her for a moment before saying, "Do you want to go get some water from the cafeteria? That might calm you down, a bit."

She finally looked at him and nodded slightly, standing up on shaky legs, leaning on Jake for support. He wrapped his arm around her waist and walked with her to the cafeteria to buy them both a drink. When they got back, their parents were standing next to the chairs that Clare and Jake had vacated, gazing down the hall.

"Clare!" Helen Martin shouted, voice filled with emotion and eyes full of concern.

Clare broke away from Jake and ran into her mother's arms, wrapping her arms around her waist and finally letting her tears flow free.

"I'm so sorry that I wasn't here earlier, honey. Glen and I got held up in traffic on the way here from the grocery store." Her mother said, pressing a kiss to the top of her head and gazing down at her little girl sadly.

"It's okay." The teen answered, hicupping. "But mom, t-the doctor said that dad has a brain hemmorhage. It's really serious. What if he-"

"Clare Diane Edwards, you are not going to think like that." Helen said firmly, hugging her daughter once more, before leading her to the chairs, Glen and Jake following them, closely.

**000000**

A couple of hours later, Clare felt herself being shaken awake. She lifted her head off of her mother's shoulder and looked around the room, bleary eyed. Her gaze landed on the nurse and she woke up fully.

The nurse smiled at the young girl and said, "Dr. Raegan sent me to tell you that we got finished with your father's surgery. He's being moved to his room now. He's not awake and he probably won't be for awhile, but you can go see him in about a half an hour."

"Thank you." Clare's mom murmured to the woman gratefully. She slid her arm from around Clare and unzipped her purse, pulling out her cellphone and zipping her purse back up. "I told Darcy that I'd call her and tell her what is going on. She got on a plane to come home as soon as she heard what happened."

"It will be good to see Darcy." Clare said softly, staring down at her lap. Maybe knowing that Darcy was coming here would help her father heal faster. Clare was already going over what she was going to say to father after not speaking to him for so long. She needed him to know that she loved him, no matter what she tried to say. She couldn't lose him.

**Next Part: Clare goes to see her father in his hospital room, Darcy arrives at the hospital.(this really will be the last part.)**


	4. Part Four

**Betrayed**

**Part Four**

Clare walked into the hospital room, the beeping of the machines that her father was hooked to, ringing through her ears. She breathed in heavily when she saw him in the bed, looking smaller and weaker that she'd ever seen him. He was still asleep, wires connected to him, a cast on his leg, and a bandage around his head. Bruises trailed up and down his bare arms and on his hands. She closed her eyes and let out a breath, trying to calm herself down, before she moved to take a seat in the chair, beside of the bed. She wrung her hands nervously, not knowing what to say. She'd only been in the hospital a few times in her life. The first being after her sister Darcy had slit her wrists-an action she'd taken when she couldn't deal with her rape. And then with Eli, after he'd purposefully wrecked his hearse, after she'd said that she hated it. It scared her more than anything. The smells, and the sounds, and just everything about this place, filled her with dread. Taking in another calming breath, she reached out her shaky left hand and placed it on her father's. She leaned her chin on the bed and stared at him, tearfully.

"Hey dad, Darcy's on her way. She was really worried when she heard about your accident. You need to get better, daddy. Me and Darcy-we need you. I know that I haven't been acting like I care about you and I regret it _so _much. I was just...so upset, you know? I mean...you and mom raised Darcy and I in this really religous household. We went to church every Sunday, and we were taught that divorce was wrong and sex before marriage was a sin. We were taught all of these things and we grew up believing all of this-and then, you and mom did all of those things. You were going against everything that you taught us. I know that the divorce was the best thing for you-I do. I mean, before, you two fought so much. That wasn't healthy. But...it still hurts. It feels as if our family doesn't exist anymore. Darcy has been gone for about three years now-it took you getting hurt for her to decide coming back, you and mom divorced, mom is remarried, and when you were gone for a few months for your job, I felt as if you didn't care about me. And when I found those divorce papers, I felt so betrayed. How could you cheat on mom? You two pledged to love eachother forever, you had two kids together! Didn't you think of how your actions would affect Darcy and I?" She shook her head as she said all of this. It felt good to get it out, even if he couldn't answer back. She'd kept her feelings about the subject in for so long.

Suddenly, she heard a soft knock on the door and a voice that she knew all too well say, "Clare?"

"Darcy." Clare whispered, looking torwards the doorway where her older sister stood, a haunted look on her face.

Darcy walked farther into the room, pulling the chair by the window up beside the bed and her sister, before she leaned down to give Clare a desperate hug. "Hey, Clare." She said softly, flipping her hair back and casting her brown eyes over her sister's form. "How long have you been in here?"

"About twenty minutes." The younger Edwards sister murmured. "Are mom, Glen, and Jake still out there?"

"They went to the cafeteria to get something to eat. Jake pulled me aside and told me that he was going to bring you in something to snack on, later. " Darcy answered softly. "Dad hasn't woken up at all?"

Clare nodded at what Darcy said and then replied, "No. His doctor doesn't know exactly when he'll wake up. It's a miracle that he made it through surgery, by the way Dr. Raegan talked."

Darcy wrapped an arm around Clare's shoulders and rested her head ontop of her's.

000

A knock on the door caused Clare and Darcy to both look up, locking eyes on their mom.

"Hey you two." Helen said, smiling sadly at them as she walked into the room. "How about we get out of here? You two need some rest. You can both freshen up and come back to see your father in the morning."

Clare glanced at her father's figure on the bed, seeing that nothing had changed. Perhaps things would be different by morning. "Okay." She whispered, standing up when Darcy did. She leaned down to place a kiss on his cheek and mumble that she loved him in his ear, while Darcy did the same. Then, turning on her heel, she walked torwards her mother who gently placed an arm around Clare's waist and around Darcy's. The three headed out of the room and out of the hospital, to the car where that had been pulled up infront. Jake and Glen both stood beside it, waiting on them.

Jake immediatly moved to embrace Clare, an action that didn't go unnoticed by Darcy who watched with curiousity and suspicion as Clare held onto Jake tightly, seeming very comfortable with being in his arms. Not really in a familial type of way. More of a person finding comfort in their lover. Darcy shook her head immediatly erasing that thought from her mind. Clare and Jake being together wasn't possible. Not with her and Darcy's mom and Jake's father being married. The older Edwards sister was sure that her mind was playing tricks on her.

000

It had been an hour since they'd arrived home and Clare still couldn't sleep. She was tossing and turning in her bed, nightmares of her father dying flitting through her mind. She shot up in bed, sweat dripping down her face and tears stinging her eyes. She wished that they would stop. She wished that her mind wasn't torturing her with these horrible dreams. Her father had to be okay. She needed him in her life. And so did Darcy. They couldn't lose him. Not after everything they'd already went through. She turned her head to look at her sister who was sleeping deeply in the bed that had been moved back into the room for her. Getting up, Clare walked over to the bed and shook her sister awake.

"Clare? Why aren't you asleep?" Darcy asked tiredly with a yawn.

"I can't sleep." Clare answered quietly. "Can I please sleep with you?"

Darcy gazed at her sister and pulled the blankets down wordlessly, watching her baby sister climb underneath them. They'd done this countless times before when Darcy couldn't sleep after her rape. She'd needed to know that she was safe, that she was okay so she and Clare would often sleep in the same bed. It had kept the dreams away. "Daddy's going to be okay, Clare." Darcy whispered as they were drifting off to sleep. "You've gotta believe that."

**LAST PART: So...this will now be a five shot. The next part will definitely be the end. I promise. lol.**


	5. Part Five

**Betrayed**

**Part Five**

The next morning at breakfast was a quiet one. Not just because of what had happened to Clare and Darcy's father, but also because this was Darcy's first day with her newly blended family. Of course, she'd known all about her mother's new marriage. to Glen Martin. A man whom Darcy and Clare had known before, as a friend to their parents. With her being in Kenya though, she hadn't gotten to come to the wedding. She hadn't known about her father's cheating, either. And being faced with prospect of losing her dad was a tough pill to swallow.

Last night had been rough. Beyond rough. Darcy had a feeling that today probably wouldn't be any better, despite the fact that she had tried to reassure Clare. Their family almost seemed curse, in her opinion. With her being stalked by Adams, then her rape, her multiple suicide attempts, her sister's drama with her ex-boyfriend, Eli, their parents fighting, the divorce, their father's cheating. The family being basically broken. And then, this. It was all too much to deal with. She didn't know how her sister had dealt with this.

"So, your mom told me about the work that you did in Kenya. She and your sister are so proud." Glen said, clearing his throat and smiling charmingly at the young woman. It was his attempt at breaking the uncomfortable silence.

Darcy's brown eyes flickered up at that, as she took a bite of pancake. "Yeah." She replied, trying to smile, despite everything. "It was really...rewarding there. But, I think that it's about time that I've come back home. I've been away for too long."

"Darcy, what time are we going to go to visit dad?" Clare's quiet voice whispered from between her older sister and Jake.

The older Edwards girl turned her head to smile at her sister. "We can leave as soon as we're finished with breakfast, if you want."

Helen frowned a little bit. "Darcy, I was hoping that we could all spend the day together. Perhaps go out to dinner, later. I want you to get to know your stepfather and stepbrother."

"Mom, dad is in the hospital and he's seriously hurt. I'm back, now. We can have dinner or whatever, whenever. But I think that today, me and Clare need to be at the hospital." Darcy told her mother in a firm voice.

"Darcy's right, Helen. We can all spend the day together, tomorrow. Jake and I have a job to get to, anyway." Glen told his wife, quickly, trying to stop any chance of argument.

The woman bit her lip and then nodded. "Okay you two. Just take care of yourselves and make sure that you eat something." Helen relented.

000

After breakfast, Clare and Darcy went out to the car so that they could head to the hospital. They waved goodbye.

"So, what's up with you and Jake?" Darcy questioned as Jake and his dad climbed in their truck, on their way to their construction job.

Clare stopped waving at her boyfriend and turned her head to look at her sister, as they began to pull out the drive. "What do you mean?" She asked, confusion written on her face.

"C'mon Clare. I know you. I'm not blind or clueless, like mom and Glen. There's something going on between you two. I _know _it." Darcy replied.

The girl in question laughed, nervously. "I don't even know what you're talking about Darc." She lied. "Of course Jake and I are close. Our parents are married. He's been a good friend and brother figure."

The older sister scoffed and rolled her brown eyes as they drove to the hospital. "The way you look at him and the way he looks at and worries over you, doesn't seem very brotherly or sisterly to me."

"Why are you even bringing this up? Dad's in the hospital, isn't that more important?" Clare asked, sounding rather annoyed.

"Of course it is, Clare. But I'm curious. You do know that I won't judge you about this, right? I'll understand." Darcy answered, pulling a hand off of the wheel to squeeze her baby sister's hand.

Clare nodded. "I know Darcy." She replied, biting her lip as she debated on whether or not to tell Darcy that she was right. Coming to a decision she sighed and said, "You're right. I _am _dating Jake."

"How long has it been going on for?" Darcy asked, curiously as she parked infront of the hospital.

The younger girl stared down into her lap, shyly, a blush staining her cheeks. "Since the second semester of my sophmore year." She answered. "It wasn't supposed to be so serious in the beginning, but I really care so much for him."

"I'm happy for you, Clare. It's nice to know that you're with someone that cares so much for you. Especially after that whole Eli fiasco." Darcy grinned and reached over to embrace her sister, warmly.

0000

Clare sighed as she leaned back into her chair. She and Darcy had been here for over two hours. Darcy had just went to get something to drink. There hadn't been much change with their father. He was a little bit better than he was, yesterday. He still hadn't woken up, though. The doctor and nurses had said that that was normal.

She put her hand on the bed, next to her father's, and then closed her eyes. It was frustrating. She wished that she and Darcy could will him awake. She was so happy that he was doing better than he was, yesterday, but she wished that he was awake. Suddenly, she tensed when she felt long, cool fingers wrap around her hand. Her head popped up, blue eyes widening as they trailed to her hand, to see her dad holding it. Her gaze trailed up his arm, to his face, only to see his eyes just barely open. She let out a squeal of happiness and pushed the button for the nurse. "Hey daddy." She whispered, tears streaming down her face as she stared at him. She didn't pay attention to the nurse or the doctor as they came into the room, too happy that her father was finally awake.

**Next Part: Will DEFINITELY be the last. It will be set about a week or so, after he gets out of the hospital. They'll finally talk about what happened before the accident.**


End file.
